Tag: living

In the final analysis, as the Dalai Lama states, “The purpose of our lives is to be happy.” Happiness in my mind equates with joy. The joy, without which all other joy is diminished, is joy in one’s self.”

Self-pride and self-joy are as vital to the individual as are air and water. Self-appreciation is the cornerstone in determining one’s health, one’s success, and one’s abundance and prosperity in both our public and our private lives.

Practical Steps to Self-appreciation

Declare your uniqueness. There will never be another you; another who is exactly like you; another who will make a contribution to the planet in exactly the way that you do.

Look for the things you like about yourself. Write them down and then focus on one thing a day, e.g. ‘I am competent’ or ‘I am creative’ or ‘I am now creating my ideal life.’

Forgive yourself. The past is over; know that you were doing the best you could with your level of knowledge and understanding at that time.

Use affirmations to remind yourself of your sacredness. Put them on the fridge, mirrors, wherever, to remind yourself that you are unique. For example, ‘I like and appreciate myself,’ ‘I am a lovable, valuable person and deserve the best life has to offer.’

Read books that inspire you. Books such as daily meditations, thoughts for the day, sayings and quotations from inspirational leaders set the tone for creating an attitude of joy and/or peace before you start your day.

Practice an ‘attitude of gratitude.’ We have created much to be thankful for, our health, our abundance, and our freedoms. Carry a small notebook with you and write down everything that you are grateful for all day long. You will be amazed at all the blessings in your life – your friends, your family, your job, your warm home, the fact that you don’t have to worry about stepping on landmines or getting your head blown off as you step out a door.

Be true to yourself. Live the life you have envisioned for yourself. Don’t look to others for approval; look within, and you will find it all.

How do you appreciate yourself? Or do you? Did you learn that being good to yourself was selfish? If you said ‘No’ were you bad? If you praised yourself or were praised, were people afraid you might get a ‘swelled head’?

Most of us get the message loud and clear that praising ourselves or others would lead to ‘becoming conceited’ or ‘slacking off.’ The tragedy of this belief is that, in fact, the very opposite is true. What you pay attention to expands.

Self-appreciation and appreciation of others is based on love and acceptance. In other words, as I am willing to love me, I am capable of loving you.

Much of what we say and do is called ‘constructive criticism.’ This means I tell you something supposedly for ‘your own good.’

What actually happens is that I judge what you do and say based on ‘should’ then I tell you how to ‘do it right.’ In other words, criticism is destructive and leads people to feelings of inadequacy: love and acceptance lead to feelings of self-worth.

Remember: the most important task you have is loving and accepting yourself.

What is Self-appreciation?

Self is defined as the entire person of an individual while appreciation is defined as a judgment or evaluation; an expression of admiration, approval, or gratitude. Self-appreciation is about saying: ‘I accept myself exactly as I am.’

It is about acknowledging our unique gifts and knowing within each of us is a highly creative, skilled being just waiting for discovery.

Self-appreciation is not about putting others down or thinking yourself better; it is about loving ourselves the way we are and in turn loving others the way they are.

Remember: I can only accept and love you if I am willing to love and accept myself and acknowledge my own self-worth.

Tom Paterson, in his book, “Living The Life You Were Meant To Live,” made a very interesting comment. God isn’t interested in us just making a living as He is in us “making a life.”

Well said! I believe a good question we can ask is are we so consumed with making a living that we have forgotten how to make a life!

In this world of “me” focus and striving to get ahead, maybe we need to take a deep breath, step back a little and get a larger perspective on life. At the end of our lives, I don’t think it will really matter how much money you and I made or how successful we were.

I think the questions we will be concerned about are did we love our God and others well? Did we make a difference in this world? It is not that success or money are a bad things, but Jesus was so right when he said that life was so much more than the things that we possess.

At the end of our lives, I think it will be more important to know we were the kind of people that loved and served others well rather than what kind of car we drove, the house we lived in or how much money we made. Did we love with God’s love and did others see in us who Jesus really is.

The reality is that there are no guarantees about time. Time is precious. It waits for no one and it’s the one thing we can never get back. If we postpone what we really want to do in this life, people we want to touch or influence, or even a trip we want to take that time may never come.

People wait for retirement to pursue a dream. Retirement comes and health fails and the dream never happens.

Are you making a living or making a life? Why postpone even simple joys another day? Why not take the time for a long walk and actually smell the roses and enjoy God’s beautiful creation?

It won’t cost you a thing and will not only renew your senses but also clear your head. Why not take time to lay hold of courage and forgive or to tell someone that you love them? Maybe its time to be a voice of encouragement to someone who desperately needs a kind word or hug.

Take the time to cultivate some new friendships or get together with old friends over coffee, dinner. What about the possibility of extending an act of service or kindness to a complete stranger just because you can.

Are you making a living or making a life? What a perspective! When we begin to be people of life instead of performing in life our lives can be not only meaningful but lived with no regrets!

“I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright no matter how grey the day may appear.

I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun even more.

I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive and everlasting.

I wish you enough pain so that even the smallest of joys in life may appear bigger.

I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.

I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.

I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.”

That’s a wish that has been handed down from other generations. The author’s parents used to say it to everyone. When we said, ‘I wish you enough,’ we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them.

They say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them; but then an entire life to forget them.Take Time To Have A Life… Most of us are too busy doing things for a living, that we almost forget to have a Life.